Bunion appliance



Dec. 9, 1930. M. STERN 1,784,032

BUNION APPLIANCE Filed Jan. 16, 1929 INVENTOR Miami/I'm ATTORNE? Patented Dec. 9, 1930 UNITED STATES STERN, OF NEW YORK, N. Yr,

Bumon APPLIQANCE 7 Application filed January 16, 1929. Serial lid-382,995.

M present invention relates enerally to V surgical appliances, and has particular reference to a protective and corrective bunion appliance.

The aihnent which is commonly known as bunion is due to hypertrophy of the head of either the first or the last metatarsal bones,

usually the bone of the great toe, but in rare cases, of the little toe. The usual cause is pressure.

Itis a general object of in present invention to provide a device whic may be removably applied to the affected foot for the purpose of not only relieving the distress caused by the ailment, but also correcting the effects produced thereby. I have'herein illustrated and shall hereinafter describe an appliance designed primarily for the treatment of himion of the great toe, although it will be understood that my invention is not limited to this use. a I

7 Oneof the obvious effects of bunion is an enlargement and inflammation of the small membranous sac on the metatarsal joint,

ing. My present invention-"provides for palliative treatment of this swelling, but is by no means limited to this urpose. One of the main objects is to provide means for correctively treatin the other and perhaps more important e ects of bunion, an my entire invention is predicated upon a full appreciation of the underlying'conditions that M actually exist. V

F0r'example,alth0ugh the enlargement of the head of the metatarsal bone produces the foregoing swelling and inflammation, it also "has the disastrous effect of causing the great toe to deflect outwardly, i. e., toward the little toe, out of its normal and proper position. This is due to the fact that the tendons (such as the extensor tendon) which extend rearwardly from thephalanges of the toe are normally positioned in alignment with the joints of the toe; and the enlargementof the bone referred to shifts the axis of that 'oint and throws the tendons off center. uch shifting results in the exertion of an off-center force or forces upon the phalange's and O deflects the latter outwardly to such an extent 'anges thereof mesially away 5 which is the wellk'lnown and painful swellthat in most cases the toe is forced over. the adjacent toe. Since the foot fulfillsits supporting function primarily by means of its outer longitudinal edge and the great toe, the

shifting of the latter removes a vital point i of support, and as a result, the metatarsal arch falls. The failure. of'this arch leads turn to the failure of the longitudinal or tarsal arch.

Toremedy this condition, my invention is provided with means for restoring the great,

toe to its normal position and also reestablishing the metatarsal arch. The restoration of the great toe is effected by urging the phalrom the adjacent toe. The reestablishment of -the metatarsal arch is induced by supporting the latterfrom underneath and also by yieldably binding all the metatarsal bones together.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device which is not only inexpensive to manufacture, but highly satisfactory from the standpoint of appearance, comfort and sanitation A particular feature lies in providing an integral body of absorptive artifi' 'cial sponge material which is yieldably compressible and capable of proper shaping in accordance-with the general objects of my invention.

The manner-in which I have attainedthe foregoing objects and such other objects as lnay'he'reinafter appear or be pointed out will be more fully understood upon reference to the accompanying drawings wherein I have illustrated a device embodying the features of my invention. Inthese drawings,-

Figure 1 is a plan view of the forward bones of the right foot, as they are normally arranged; v

Figure 2 isa similar view of certain of these bones, showing the cause and certain effects of bunion of the great toe;

Figure 3 is a similar view with my appliance in use, the appliance being shown in cross-section Figure 4 is a perspective View of my appliance; and

'Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 5-5 of Figure 4;. 'In' Figure-1 I have shown the bones 10, 11,

12, 13, and 14 of the metatarsal arch. Articulated to these bones are the phalanges. Thus, the head 15 of the metatarsal bone of the great toe is jointed at 16 to the phalanges 17 and 18, and I draw particular attention to the alignment of the joints of this toe. The dot and dash line 19 represents the outline of the foot, and it will be noted that the great toe lies alongside of its adjacent toe. The foot normally supports the weight of the body along the outer border 20 and upon the great toe 21, the bones 10-1 forming a transverse arch.

In Figure 2 I have shown a typical enlargement of the head 15. As a result, the joint 16 -is thrown slightly mesially, thus causing the tendons to exert a rearward pull which deflects the phalanges 17 and 18 out wardly. In dot and dash lines I have shown the new outline of the foot, and it will be noted that the great toe overlies or overlaps the adjacent toe 22. As a result, the foot is deprived of the support which the great toe normally should afford, and the bones 1014= Y tendto collapse to furnisha substitute support. The collapse of this metatarsal arch causes a further spreading of the metatarsal bones and this serves merely to aggravate the mesial pressureof the enlarged head 15. Such inesial pressure produces the inflamed swelling 23.

The failure of the metatarsal arch induces a. failure of the tarsal arch, and as a result,

' the patient is subjected to much annoyance,

- pain, and walks flat-footed.

Referring for themoment to Figure 4:, I will point out that I have provided a body 24 of yieldably compressible material such as artificial sponge. This body is so shaped and constructed as to provide a U-shaped portion 25,'the arms of the U defining top and bottom portions 26 and 27 respectively. Extendingbetween the portions 26 and 27 is the wedge portion 28, this portion being spaced from the U-shaped portion so as to provide an opening 29. The rear portion of the bottom 27 is somewhat thickened as at 30.

When the device is used, it is applied rearwardly over the great toe 21 so that the latter projects outwardly through the opening 29. The U-shaped portion 25 constitutes a protective portion which overlies and encloses the mesial side of the enlarged head 15. The wedge portion 28 occupies the space a between the great toe21 and the adjacent toe 22. The thickened supporting portion 30 underlies the area behind the enlarged head 15 and the heads of the adjacent metatarsal bone or bones to relieve these bones of weight-bearing in their fallen or abnormal positions.

In accordance with my invention, I provide means for simultaneously encircling and yieldably binding together all of the metatarsal bones 1014 so as to reestablish necessary physical functions.

al pressure. Purely protective devices of this character are wellknown, but they frequently serve to aggravate the pressure'instead of relieving it. By making my devicev of a ma terial such as artificial sponge, I enclose the inflamed area in an extremely soft and readily yieldable sheath which is highly. satisfactory. The. porous nature of the material renders the-device somewhat pneumatic in nature. Furtherrnore, the, porosity permits of proper. ventilation, facilitates absorption of perspiration, and may also serve as a means for applying wet dressings or medications to the inflamed area. In addition, material of the character of artificial sponge retains. its

resiliency and does not pack or mat.

The wedge portion 28 serves in a similar yieldable manner to spread the toes 21 and 22, thereby urging the phalanges 17 and 1S mesially toward their normal position. This serves to restore the great toe-to its proper position for purposes of support.

The reestablishment of the metatarsal arch is facilitated not only by the supporting por tion 30 which affords a soft and yieldable pad for the most sensitive part, but also by means of the band 31 whose binding effect tends to restore the bones 1014 to their original arched positions.

It. will thus be seen that I have provided a device whichis not only simple in nature but which is properly designed to accomplish the Although I have illustrated and described an embodiment-wherein a body of suitable spongy material is associated with a resilient band carried thereby, nevertheless I have found it satisfactory to make the entire device of a totally integral nature since the type of porous resilient material which I prefer to use has sufficient flexibility and elasticity to permit a shaping thereof to form an integral band encircling the foot. In a further embodiment, the entire device is made of a blank of the artificial sponge material in sheet form, such blank being properly configured so that oppositely extending band portions may be brought around thefoot and then removably attached to each other as by snap fasteners or the like. In such an embodiment, the wedge portion is also in the nature of a projecting strip which is brought either upwardly or downwardly through the space inc between the toes and then removablysecured in position by a fastening device.

Regardless of the particular manner in which the device is constructed, I wish to point out that it is reversible and may be used with equal facility upon the opposite foot. Also, by designing the relative sizes of the various portions in a proper manner the appliance may be used in connection with bunion of the little toe. The capability of sterilizing the entire appliance is also to be noted.

In general, it will be obvious that changes in the details herein described and illustrated for the purpose of explaining the nature of my invention may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claim. It is therefore intended that these details be interpreted as illustrative, and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is A bunion appliance comprising a unitary I body of soft, yieldable, spongy rubber, said body being substantially U-shaped and having an opening adapted to receive the great toe, the portion of said body adjacent one side of said opening constituting a protective sheath for enclosing the mesial side of the head of the first metatarsal-phalangeal joint, the portion of said body adjacent the other 7 side of said opening being of suflicient thick-,

' ness when compressed to constitute a wedge adapted to occupy the space between the great toe and the ad acent toe, the arms of the U defining top and bottom portions adapted to overlie and underlie, respectively, the upper and lower surfaces of the foot, said bottom portion being thickened to form a support for the metatarsal arch and a band of yieldable material attached to said body and adapted to encircle all the bones of the metatarsal arch behind the'heads thereof to reestablish said arch.

In witness whereof I have signed this specification this 10 day of Januar 1929.

MAXIMILIAN TERN. 

